Memorial Day is the date circled each year on the May calendar when all Americans pay homage to our country's bravest and brightest heroes, those men and women of the military whose dedication to our country has resulted in the ultimate sacrifice.  These warrior giants deserve our respect and our gratitude each and every day.

The month of May also spotlights another group of America's everyday heroes, who too deserve recognition and praise. These are our individual community's foster parents, whose day-in and day-out commitment to provide sanctuary to our nation's precious foster care children is medal-of-honor worthy.  May is National Foster Care Month.

As we stand at attention this Memorial Day in honor of America's military's heroes, let us also acknowledge the service to country of our various community's foster parents, without whom our nation's most valuable resource, our children, would be imperiled.

While on a macro level, statistics regarding foster care can seem, in a word, daunting, closer inspection demonstrates hopefulness.  For example, even though currently there are 107,000 foster care children available for adoption in America, on just one single November day over the past eleven (11) years (National Adoption Day), more than 35,000 foster care children have been adopted.

It was the iconic Winston Churchill who said, "we make a living by what we make. We make a life by what we give." The brilliance of Churchill's words is their simplicity and this statement should be a clarion call-especially this month-for us all to pay tribute to our nation's military heroes and to our nation's foster parent heroes.

This Memorial Day, and every other blessed day of the year, God bless America.

Jeanne T. Tate, Heart Of Adoptions, Inc., Florida